Norwegian hostage Kjartan Sekkingstad was freed by militants after a year of jungle captivity.
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Kjartan Sekkingstad was freed in Patikul town in Sulu province and was eventually secured by rebels from the larger Moro National Liberation Front, which has signed a peace deal with the government and helped negotiate his release, Philippine government officials said.
The Abu Sayyaf freed Sekkingstad on Saturday, handing him over to another Muslim rebel group which is engaged in peace talks with the government and at whose camp he spent the night.
He said Abu Sayyaf had released the Indonesian captives to the MNLF and they would be handed over to Indonesian government representatives in Jolo.
The group has been agitating for the creation of an independent Islamic state in predominantly Catholic Philippines, and uses tactics such as hostage-taking and bombings to pressure the government.
He refused to confirm whether the group also held another three Malaysians who were reported to have been kidnapped off Malaysia, and said, “we’re still monitoring if the kidnappers are really from the group because those fishermen were taken from the waters of Sabah”.
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When he arrived in Davao City, Mr. Sekkingstad was bearded, wearing a camouflage jacket and carrying a backpack he said had stopped a bullet and saved his life in a clash between troops and militants. Philippine forces have deployed 22,000 personnel to corner the militants in the Sulu islands following orders from President Rodrigo Duterte.
Sekkingstad’s release came as a result of intense military operations against Abu Sayyaf, but it is not immediately clear whether a ransom had been paid for his freedom. Without any known foreign funding, the extremists have relied on ransom kidnappings, extortion and other acts of banditry, and some commanders have pledged loyalty to the Islamic State partly in the hope of obtaining funds.
Sekkingstad had been due to meet President Rodrigo Duterte later on Saturday but the meeting was canceled due to bad weather.
In a press conference, Presidential Peace Adviser Secretary Jesus Dureza presented Sekkingstad to Pres. Duterte and the media.
Yet he expressed optimism that the remaining five hostages would soon be freed, following a Philippine military offensive against the Abu Sayyaf gunmen.
A military source had said a P30-million ransom payment was made for Sekkingstad.
Sekkingstad was abducted from a resort on Samal Island, which lies off the coast of the major southern island of Mindanao, on September 21, 2015.
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Dureza quoted then Sulu Vice Governor Abdusakur Tan as saying Flor’s release was a “gesture of goodwill” on the part of the Abu Sayyaf. “Whatever ransom payment takes place outside of the military, we do not know of it”, Maj Tan said.
